Goto Maki (後藤真希) is an Japanese pop singer, currently signed to Avex Trax's sub-label rhythm zone. Goto originally made her debut in 1999 as part of Hello! Project, and was the only third generation member of Morning Musume.

Her combined CD and DVD sales exceed 2 million copies in Japan alone. She was the second best-selling solo artist in Hello! Project. Early in summer 2008, Goto left Hello! Project and moved to the rhythm zone label. Goto Maki's highest selling single is "Ai no Bakayarou" selling 434,790 copies and her lowest selling single is "Secret" selling 14,861 copies.

In 1999, Goto Maki joined Morning Musume when she was just 13 years old. She became almost an instant favorite, helping them reach number one with the song "LOVE Machine". She soon established herself as a talented singer and dancer and took the lead on a large number of Morning Musume tracks.

From April 24 to April 30, Goto starred in the play Yokosuka Story alongside Satoda Mai.[1]

On October 28, Nikkan Sports reported Goto's graduation from Hello! Project had been announced by UFA and took place on the last date of her tour. According to the article, her graduation was in response to her brother, Goto Yuki's arrest, as well as different ideas in the direction of her singing career. Later in 2007, after her sudden H!P graduation, rumors surfaced the very next day stating that Avex's CEO, Max Matsuura, had shown interest in signing Goto. During Goto's brother trial, she disappeared from the media's eye.

On March 25, Maki re-opened her blog during her stay in Los Angeles, where she studied and practiced different types of song and dance, including R&B, jazz and hip-hop. Her blog didn't include any reference to Up-Front agency (but was still on the same address), and it was assumed that her contract with Up-Front had expired on March 1st and was not renewed as expected. Her last blog entry was on April 22.

On June 19, after many rumors had circulated, it was released to the press that Goto Maki had signed with the record label rhythm zone under Avex.

Maki debuted with Avex when she participated in the company's shareholders' meeting on June 22nd, singing a cover of Whitney Houston's "Saving All My Love for You." She also participated in a-nation'08 (Osaka on August 24th and Tokyo on August 31st) alongside Kumi Koda, Ai Otsuka, EXILE, Ami Suzuki, AAA, TVXQ, Namie Amuro, and Ayumi Hamasaki, among others. On a-nation, she performed the self-written song
"Hear me", a song unreleased to the date, drawing media attention for the first time since her graduation.

The SWEET BLACK Project was a cross-media collaboration between J-WAVE, Avex and Mixi. Goto Maki herself chose the logo and the name, which is meant to reflect the “positive and negative” side of the life of today’s women.

On January 5, J-WAVE premiered SWEET BLACK Girls, a 15 minute segment hosted by Goto Maki and Ryu as part of the popular radio show PLATOn. The show aired Mon-Fri and focused on the life of women in their twenties. Reception was extremely good, as 30,000 messages were received during the first week alone.

To complete the project, Mixi, the most used networking community in Japan, opened a special space for SWEET BLACK, and Avex launched a web-documentary on YouTube based on Goto’s daily routine as a singer. Immediate success was admittedly beyond expectations.

On January 21, Goto released her first digital single with Avex, "Fly away". The lyrics, penned by Goto herself, are based on Mambo, a story written by young author Hitomi Kanehara, who won the Akutagawa Prize for her 2003 novel Hebi ni Pierce (Snakes and Earrings).

One month later, on February 25, Goto released her second digital single, "Lady-Rise", also penned by herself. This time, Goto collaborated with Sakurazawa Erika, a Japanese manga author whose works are mostly published in josei magazines (comics targeted to young women).

After a brief hiatus, Goto returned to the music scene announcing her official debut (as opposed to her collaboration with SWEET BLACK). The mini-album ONE was released on July 28, featuring five new songs. Goto put on a mini-live, which was recorded and streamed live online, in which she discussed the album and performed three songs.

As promotion for this release, Goto appeared on several Television shows. One particular show, Kinyoubi no Sumatachi e, aired a 2-hour special on her life and included interviews with Goto as well as a performance of one of her new songs, "hanauta", written for her mother. This episode reached 19.3% ratings for the show, making it the most watched program of the day.

On June 22, she announced on her official website that she would be going on hiatus in January 2012. In her blog, she described that she had been looking at her life differently since her mother passed away, and she needed a hiatus to find herself again.[2]

On September 30, Goto Maki attended Takahashi Ai's graduation.

On August 2, an official website for Goto Maki’s pre-hiatus last concert titled G-Emotion FINAL opened.[3]

On October 17, Goto opened a temporary Ameba blog. The blog was opened for 510 hours (Goto = 510), which is roughly 21 days.

Goto has two older sisters and a younger brother named Yuki. Both of her parents are deceased: her father passed away in 1996 from a fall while mountaineering, while her mother passed away in 2010. Her grandmother passed away in 2005.

On October 20, 2007, Goto Yuki, Goto Maki's younger brother and former member of idol group EE Jump, was arrested. He and two accomplices, aged 18 and 19, had broken into a construction site in Edogawe, Tokyo on July 15, 2007 and made off with 80 reels of electric cable worth approximately 1 million yen. According to Flash magazine, Goto and one of her brother's accomplices had been romantically involved for some time, after the two met at Yuki's wedding in 2005. Due to the circumstances surrounding the robbery scandal, they haven't been in contact with each other. The incident eventually led to Goto Maki's graduation from Hello! Project.

On January 23, 2010, Goto witnessed the death of her mother, Goto Tokiko, in their home in Edogawa, Tokyo. Her death was apparently caused by a fatal fall from the third story of their house while Tokiko was under the influence of alcohol. Goto herself found her at around 11 PM, and she was rushed to the hospital before passing away on the 24th. A funeral service was held on the 28th, attended by Goto and several former Hello! Project members.

In mid-2014 various news sources reported that Goto would be marrying a non-celebrity who was three years her junior. Goto confirmed the news on her blog on July 22, 2014.[5]

On June 17, 2015, Goto announced on her blog that she was pregnant with her first child.[6] On December 7, Goto gave birth to a baby girl.[7]

On October 31, 2016, Goto announced she was five months pregnant with her second child, due in the following spring.[8] She gave birth to a son on March 24, 2017.[9]

When Goto Maki joined Morning Musume in August 1999, she was in her second year of middle school. She graduated high school in March 2004. She was an alumnae of Hinode Girls Gakuen High School.